Cereal-based beverages are expected to grow as a category in the coming years. In the Middle East there is especially a potential since there is limit to consumption of alcoholic beverages and the cereal-based drink is marketed as non-alcoholic. In the Western market there is also a potential since the cereal-based beverage is a healthier alternative to the conventional soft drink and alcoholic beverage.
Beverages, in particular alcoholic fermented beverages, for example wine and beer, often have a tendency to be hazy which can be of biological or physico-chemical origin. Haze (or turbidity) is undesirable because hazy beverages are viewed as being less appealing than clear beverages. Furthermore, some consumers may believe that the haziness is a sign of microbiological spoilage.
Cereal extracts, such as malt extracts, are frequently used in the food and beverage industry. Cereal extracts for the food industry are typically used as food additives (e.g. sugar replacement, fillers, flavour enhancers, colouring agents and baking agents) and as base compound for the production of beverages such as non alcoholic beer, non-fermented beverages and soft drinks. Cereal extracts can be prepared from both malted and un-malted cereals. Cereal extracts prepared from malted cereal are typically produced by a process in which malted cereal is grounded, mixed with hot water in a mash tun or mashing kettle for saccharification, filtered to obtain a wort, and finally concentrated by evaporation and/or drying to increase the dry matter content and obtain the cereal extract, e.g. in the form of a syrup, a granulate or a powder.
However, when presently available cereal extracts are used in the preparation of e.g. non-fermented beverages, such beverages have to be filtrated or otherwise purified in order to avoid haze formation in the final product. Hence, if not filtrated, such beverages prepared from the presently known cereal extracts are less appealing than clear beverages, and the necessary purification steps constitute costly and major disadvantages.
A number of methods for producing cereal extracts are known, i.a. from WO0143566 which describes how to produce a water-soluble bean-based extract including one or more isoflavone glycosides. Also disclosed is a method of preparing such a water-soluble bean-based extract.
WO2008024657A describes a method of making a haze-free non-alcoholic malt beverage which includes forming a malt solution containing a coagulant and water, adjusting the pH of the malt solution so that the pH of the malt solution is less than about 4.0 and coagulating the protein from the malt extract in the malt solution. The coagulated protein from the malt solution is removed to form a haze-free malt beverage.
CA 325884 describes a process and apparatus for producing malt extract and malt beverages, i.a. including the use of centrifugally removing the resulting liquor from the residual grains to obtain a substantially clear malt extract syrup.
US2004/0170726 describes a process for the production of a cereal beer made from cereal, and products prepared from the process.
WO2005117616 describes a method of preventing or reducing haze in a beverage using silane-treated silica filter media.
WO02/057403 describes stabilisation of beverages against haze formation.
WOGB2288608 describes treatment with PVPP to remove unwanted trace materials.
WO2005070234 describes a process for the production of sediment free clarified fruit juices.
However, there is still a need for improved methods for producing concentrated cereal extracts which are readily soluble in water and which can be used as an ingredient in the production of clear and haze-free beverages. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method which is capable of overcoming the above obstacles.
It has now been found that it is possible to obtain readily soluble concentrated cereal-based extracts which provides for the preparation of clear and haze free beverages, by subjecting a wort to a number of consecutive processing steps, including i.a. a heat treatment step and a cold stabilisation step before concentration followed by filtration.